Whew! Taking a new step in life and I find myself traveling to London for a few months. There's so much to learn and experience, but fortunately I'll be with my girlfriend Michelle for most of this journey. Company always makes experiences better.

As soon as we arrived, we headed to our temporary location over in Hackney. Our hosts are very kind and the place was clean and modern, but what we (particularly Michelle) was really looking forward for was the dog. And what a dog! A beautiful golden German Shepard, she was massive! Fortunately, like most large dogs, she was a very kind and welcoming dog that loved attention and despite the long, extra thick coat she wore, shed considerably less than the Corgi and cats that I roomed with before.

Honestly, the fur here is the only evidence that she sheds. Anyways, onto the streets!

And of course, it'll be cars. Saw a fair number of these Nissan Qashqai throughout the day, looks a lot better than the Rogue they sell in the States.

Next up was this E46 compact. They only sold the Compact model in the States during the E36 gen, and honestly, I don't think we were missing out on much by not getting this model. I do like that seagreen/dark grey (even though it's really just dirty wheels) color combo though.

Vintage bikes (and cycles) are pretty common around here. While I'm a fan of the Cali-style cafes such as the creations by Deus, there's something pure about a stock, well worn but well maintained Euro bike.

We made our way over to Broadway Market, a quiet but chic area with the main road lined with young cafes and art stores. Made it just in time to catch some filming, though we think it was just for a commercial.

One thing I certainly noticed was the amount of street art. Even compared to SF and LA, areas that are quite liberal with such art, the amount and variety seemed to be greater here. Whether it be a scribbled drawing or a paid advert, everywhere you looked there some something. Small wonder why artists such as Banksy come from here.

And here's another pic of a car, this time an old Citroen 2CV. Yup, definitely in Europe. Part 2 to be posted soon.